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“Last night was Plan A. Tonight, Plan B. There’s always a Plan B.”
Dean was glaring, snarling at the men standing before them. Triple H and Randy Orton, posted up outside the ring with smug smiles like they were on top of the world. It made Dean’s blood boil. It was hardly a month ago when the Shield stomped Evolution’s ass into the mat at Extreme Rules, and now H was acting like he didn’t have a care in the world. Like he had some sort of master plan.
Bullshit , Dean thought. It didn’t matter what sick game H was trying to get them to play, the Shield always pulled through.
He glanced over at Roman who was staring down Orton, not breaking eye contact for even a second as the Viper smiled and licked his lips. Roman stepped forward, a signal they weren’t going to take this shit, and Dean stepped forward as well. It wasn’t until Dean heard a sudden clatter behind him that he quickly glanced back at Seth.
Seth hadn’t stepped up next to them. He had instead thrown aside the metal chair he was holding, it loudly clattering against the ground outside the ring. Why’d you throw that away, Sethie, we might fucking need that, Dean groused to himself.
Dean could tell Roman was pissed, he was too. Seth, on the other hand, his face was a storm of emotion. He was trying hard to school it, to not give away what he was feeling to anyone else, but Dean knew. Seth was in turmoil over something.
A sudden movement made Dean turn back to Triple H and Orton – the Game had lifted the sledgehammer off his shoulder, and shrugged.
“We’ll just have to see what the future holds,” H said, smile not leaving his face. His eyes flicked over all three of them before he patted Orton’s shoulder and turned around to leave. “Have a good night, boys.”
The crowd booed loudly, obviously hoping to see some action between them but Dean knew H didn’t give a shit. He did things on his own time, and that seemed to include whatever sick plan he was formulating against the Shield.
The three of them lingered in the ring for a few moments, making sure Triple H and Orton did in fact retreat backstage before coming together.
“Let’s head out the back way,” Roman murmured, “I don’t want to run into them if we don’t have to.”
Dean gave a jerky nod. “Get our shit, get the hell out of here.”
Seth nodded his assent, but didn’t say anything.
They did a quick pose for the crowd, pushing their fists together and letting them cheer before quickly exiting through a side hallway. They hurried through the backstage to their makeshift locker room, which was always an empty room they sequestered to themselves at whatever arena they were at.
Dean slid out of his vest, threw on his leather jacket, grabbed his bag, and he was ready to go. Seth and Roman were unbuckling themselves from their vests, shoving them into their own bags. Roman quickly changed into a fresh t-shirt before hefting his bag over his shoulder and jangling their rental car keys in his hand.
“I’ll drive.”
Dean nodded, glancing over at Seth who was slowly putting his hair up into a bun. He was staring at the ground, seemingly at nothing, his face blank. It made Dean feel uneasy.
As they exited the room, Dean placed a gentle hand on the back of Seth’s neck. “You good?” he whispered, not wanting to worry Roman if Seth actually was fine.
Seth gave a terse nod, not saying anything, before quickly following Roman down the hallway.
Dean frowned. He’d known Seth long enough that something very obviously seemed wrong. But if Seth didn’t talk, Dean couldn’t help. He quickly strode after the two of them, his eyes not leaving Seth.
Surprisingly, they made it to their rental without running into anyone besides a few stray arena employees. Seth immediately went to sit in the back of the vehicle, freeing up the passenger seat for Dean. They rode in silence, Roman focused on driving, Dean trying to figure out what possibly could be the reason for Seth acting like he was. Seth enjoyed brainstorming with them after shows, talking about what happened and what their next step should be. It was eerie that he was this quiet. It didn’t sit right with Dean.
They arrived at their hotel, wasting no time checking in and making it up to their room. As soon as Roman pressed the keycard to the digital lock and the door clicked open, Seth brushed past them, tossing his bag on the ground and going into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him.
Roman’s eyebrows furrowed together. “What was that?” he asked, tossing his own bag on the floor before sitting on the edge of the single king bed in the room and kicking off his shoes.
Dean shrugged before dropping his own bag and rummaging through it for a non-sweaty pair of shorts and shirt. “I dunno. Something seems to be on his mind.”
Roman frowned, gaze lingering on the bathroom door as they both heard the shower turn on.
“Hm,” was all Roman said. Dean knew there were a hundred questions poised on Roman’s tongue, but Roman didn’t press. He knew they all needed their space sometimes, and maybe Seth just needed some time to himself right now.
Maybe.
Dean had no idea what to think.
------
“Seth's been in there a while,” Dean mused.
Him and Roman had been laying in the bed for a bit, Dean focused on some sort of crossword game on his phone while Roman idly played with his hair.
Huh. Roman titled his head, listening for any sounds from the bathroom. Sure enough, he could hear the spray of the shower still going. Seth had gone into the bathroom as soon as they arrived back at the room, and the shower was still running which was… weird. Seth usually only rinsed off after matches, as he liked to do his full shower routine in the mornings as he spent a lot of time on his hair like Roman.
Roman gave one final scritch to Dean’s head before gently shoving Dean off of him and standing up. He stretched his arms up and over his head, letting out a satisfied sigh when something in his back popped, releasing tension. “I'll go check on him.”
Dean hummed acknowledgement, gaze not leaving his phone as Roman strode to the bathroom door.
“Seth,” he called out after knocking, “you alright in there?”
There was no response, just the steady sound of the water running from the shower.
Roman swallowed, a heavy feeling of worry building in his chest. He thought back to Seth's quiet demeanor in the car, how Seth seemed to be avoiding looking at them. Seth was usually talkative after matches, already brainstorming for the future. But this time he was dead quiet. If something was wrong, Seth would tell them, wouldn't he? They'd been together this long, fought through everything that was thrown at them. But then again, Roman could be wrong and Seth could be fine. Maybe Seth just wanted some quiet after a stressful night. He really had no idea.
But Seth not answering him was worrying Roman. No chipper reply or sass filled quip. Just. Silence.
“Seth?” Roman said again. He waited a few moments. No response. Fuck. He placed his hand on the door handle and turned it. “I'm coming in,” he announced before gently pushing open the door.
The bathroom wasn’t too small for a hotel bathroom. The toilet was immediately on the left and sink on the right. The shower took up the far wall, a glass pane with a glass door dividing it from the rest of the bathroom, preventing water from splashing out.
Roman's breath caught in his throat when he saw Seth.
The Architect was standing in the shower with his back to Roman, his forehead pressed onto the tiled shower wall with his hands clenched against the wall up by his head. The showerhead was up and to the left of him, water beating down across his shoulders and back, dripping down his bare legs to hit the floor and meander down the drain.
Roman slowly stepped towards the shower, leaving the bathroom door open, unsure of what was happening.
“Seth?” He asked again, trying to keep his voice gentle and prevent the concern he was feeling from coming out in it. “Are you okay? What's going on?”
Despite his gentle tone, Seth jumped at hearing Roman's voice. Did he not hear him enter the bathroom? Seth unclenched his hands and pressed them flat and hard against the shower wall.
Roman continued slowly approaching the shower, and when he was close enough to hover his hand over the handle of the glass door, he froze.
Seth was shaking. His arms, his hands. He seemed moments away from vibrating straight out of his skin. His back was flushed a bright red despite the comfortable temperature of the room. Was the water too hot?
“I don't know what's going on but something’s wrong, right?” Roman spoke softly, not wanting to startle him again. “I'm going to open the door, okay? I'm here if you need anything, Seth.”
It was when his hand grasped the handle to pull the shower door open that Seth finally turned to face him, and Roman felt his heart break in two.
Seth's eyes were wet, and it wasn't from the spray of the shower. Tears were dripping down his face, falling down to land on his chest which was just as flushed as his back. His right hand left the tiled wall to brace against the glass shower pane, and Roman thought for a panicked moment Seth was about to fall over with how much he was shaking.
“Roman I-” Seth tried to speak but as soon as he opened his mouth he was interrupted by a shuddering, broken sob coming from deep within his chest. He tried to breathe through it, his breaths coming fast. “I- I was supposed to-”
And that's when he did collapse, his legs buckling underneath him and his body hitting the tiled wall. But Roman was ready. He threw open the shower door and shoved himself into the space, catching Seth before he hit the ground. The shower water hit his bare arms and Roman had to grit his teeth as he reached through it to turn the spray off. It was absolutely freezing, the water on the floor of the shower soaking into Roman’s sweatpants.
Seth was shivering but his skin was blazing hot to the touch. He grasped at Roman's shirt, sobs heaving out of him, trying to speak but failing.
“DEAN!” Roman yelled, letting the panic he felt lace his voice. He pulled Seth fully into his lap, Seth burying his face into his chest as he cried.
Dean immediately appeared in the doorway looking as concerned as Roman felt, eyes darting over the two of them, taking in the situation. A sort of recognition filled his eyes as he grabbed a towel that was hanging on the wall and knelt before Seth and Roman.
Dean gently placed a hand on Seth's knee, letting him know he was there. “Seth, I need you to look at me.” His voice was stern but had no harshness to it.
Seth shook his head against Roman’s chest. His sobs had slowed somewhat, but his breathing was still fast and erratic. Roman placed a hand on Seth’s back as an attempt to comfort him.
“It’s okay, you're safe,” Roman whispered as he stroked his hand up and down Seth’s back.
“I’m not mad Seth, I’m trying to help. And I need you to look at me in order for me to help, okay?” Dean said, his hand gently squeezing Seth’s knee.
Seth let out a shuddering exhale, and seemed to physically brace himself before turning his body slightly. Roman saw Dean's gaze harden, and could tell he was trying to hold it together for Seth.
Something, someone , had hurt their boy and Dean and Roman were going to find out who and destroy them.
But right now they had to help Seth.
“So good, thank you Seth,” Dean said. He reached forward with the towel, and Seth leaned forward slightly so Dean could drape it across his shoulders. Seth's hand came up to grasp at the ends of the towel. He was now sitting with his back against Roman's chest. Roman let his hands rest at Seth's sides, looking to Dean who obviously knew what he was doing more than Roman did.
Dean still had his eyes locked with Seth's, but shuffled forward slightly so he could rest both of his hands on each of Seth's knees, grounding him.
“We gotta slow your breathing, okay sweetheart? Can you watch me and follow my breaths?” Dean asked.
Seth let out a small nod, and Roman placed a small kiss at the back of his head. “I got you,” he whispered, “Just watch Dean, focus on him.”
Dean began to inhale deliberately, slowly, and once he filled his lungs he held the breath for a brief moment before exhaling just as slowly. He repeated the pattern, showing Seth exactly what he needed to follow.
It took a little bit for Seth to mimic. The inhales were easier. His exhales tended to come out in a rush that he struggled to control, but Dean didn't show any frustration with him. Roman breathed with Dean as well, hoping that Seth feeling the breaths could help. In between his breaths Roman whispered to Seth, telling him how good he was doing, how proud of him he was. Dean just kept breathing, and eventually Seth was able to match with him.
Once Seth’s breathing was stable Dean leaned forward, bumping foreheads with him. “You did so well. Roman and I are going to stand you up and take you to the bed. That okay?”
Seth gave a minute nod.
“Okay. Good.” Dean pulled away and glanced back at Roman, who nodded to him. Dean stood, clasping Seth's hands in his as Roman placed his hands on either side of Seth's torso. As Dean pulled Seth to his feet, Roman gently pushed him upright. When Seth was standing, leaning against Dean, Roman stood up behind him. Together they supported Seth's weight between them and made their way to the hotel bed.
Roman quickly changed into a dry pair of sweatpants and shirt as Dean efficiently dried Seth off with the towel before throwing it on the floor. Roman climbed into the bed first, leaning up against the headboard. Dean gently laid Seth down between his legs, Seth's head coming to rest on Roman's chest.
As soon as Seth's head landed against Roman he grabbed one of the pillows near them to hold in his arms and squeeze. The flush was disappearing from his chest, and he shivered.
With Seth safely in Roman's arms, Dean strode over to their bags, unzipping them and pulling out a few items of clothing. Dean shuffled onto the bed, presenting the clothes to Seth who gave another small nod.
It was a little weird. Usually Roman and Dean were undressing Seth, not the other way around. Roman’s heart swelled at how gentle Dean was being with Seth. First he shimmied a pair of sweats onto Seth's legs. Roman helped pull them up his hips as Dean nudged Seth to sit up slightly. He pulled one of Seth's comfy band shirts onto him before showing the final piece of clothing – one of Dean's sweatshirts Seth was constantly stealing from him. Seth's eyes lit up ever so slightly as Dean pulled it over his head and torso. Once he was dressed Seth fell back against Roman again, clutching the pillow in his arms.
Dean laid down next to them, facing Seth and bringing a hand up to his face. He bumped their foreheads together again, his hand stroking over Seth's wet hair. “Gonna chill for a bit,” he said, seemingly to both Seth and Roman. “Once we're feeling a little better, calmer, we'll talk.”
Seth let out a heavy exhale and gave another nod, still nonverbal. Roman stroked his hand up and down Seth's back as Dean stroked his hair. Roman didn't really know what just happened, but Dean seemed to know how to handle it. He desperately wanted to know what was wrong, why Seth had freaked out, but if Dean said they were going to chill, then they were going to chill. He could be patient. For Seth, he could do anything.
------
They must have fallen asleep for a bit, because when Roman opened his eyes he realized their positions had shifted.
Roman was now lying down on his side, Seth's back against his chest, the pillow he was holding thrown off to the side. Dean was on the other side of Seth, their legs tangled together and Seth's face pressed to his chest.
Dean was awake. His arm was draped over Seth's torso, fingers barely skimming Roman's thigh. Roman reached his hand out and squeezed Dean's. A check-in.
“Hey big dog,” Dean said, voice low as to not wake Seth.
“Hey Deano.”
“You good over there?”
Roman nuzzled the back of Seth's head, his curly hair now dry and soft against his nose and mouth. “Yeah, yeah I'm good. What time is it?”
“Around midnight, I think.”
Roman nodded, and paused. Thinking. Unsure of what to say about… all of this.
“I've never seen him like this before,” he elected to say. Roman had seen Seth stressed, on edge. Never like this. Never… broken. Falling apart at the seams. Seth was always the put together one, the one making sure they were all on the same page, the one making the plans. To see him fall apart like that was terrifying. It made Roman realize how much pressure Seth was under, how much pressure they were all under.
“I have,” Dean murmured. “Back in FCW and NXT. Anxiety attacks, we think. Happened whenever he was really stressed out and I guess it just builds until-” he jerked his head towards the bathroom.
“That happens,” Roman finished.
Dean nodded. “I uh. Used to have ‘em too. Panic attacks. They're a little different, more sudden. Not always a specific trigger. Anxiety attacks, like Seth has, tend to come from something. Specific stressors over a period of time.”
Roman hummed, taking in everything Dean was saying. It was in moments like these that Roman remembered how smart Dean was. Not that he ever thought of him as stupid, absolutely not. But Dean did tend to act the most rash out of the three of them, willing to take the most risks. If people thought he was crazy, well then he'd act crazy. It was in the quiet moments, moments with Roman and Seth, that he allowed his insightfulness to show. Dean may be the youngest of the three of them, but Roman often felt he was wise beyond his years.
“What stopped yours from happening?” Roman asked.
Dean sighed, his face nestling against the top of Seth's head. “Dunno. I used to live in a pretty shit environment. Now I don't. Used to not have any friends, people who cared about me. Now I do.”
That sounded like a pretty clear reason to Roman.
“I still get ‘em sometimes,” Dean admitted. “They’re rare, and not nearly as bad as they used to be. Often I just need to go off by myself for a bit. Have a smoke, go on a walk, shake it out. Tends to sort itself out.”
“Why didn’t you tell us?”
Dean shrugged. “Didn't want y'all to worry about something that didn't need to be worried about.”
Roman understood the sentiment – not wanting those close to you to worry about you – but he didn’t want Dean to feel that way. “Dean, if something is wrong, if things are… not going well, I want to help. I know Seth would too. Just because you think it isn't a big deal doesn't mean we can't care.”
Dean let out a forced sigh, “A'ight, don't go all mama bear on me.”
Roman squinted at him across the top of Seth's head.
Dean met his gaze for a few moments, then looked away and let out a groan of defeat. “Fine! Fine, I'll fucking. Let you know when it happens. If it happens. Jesus,” he grumbled.
Roman practically beamed at him. “Thank you Dean.”
They spent a few moments in silence, Dean grumbling to himself as Roman soaked in the comforting warmth coming from Seth’s body.
“Did he say anything to you?” Dean suddenly asked.
“Hm? When?”
“In the bathroom, when you went to check on him.”
Roman thought for a moment. It had all happened so fast: seeing Seth in that state, Seth collapsing, the sensation of freezing water against his skin, yelling for Dean. Roman suddenly realized maybe the water was so cold because Seth was so hot – he was trying to calm down and lower his body temperature.
Dean was staring at him. Roman cleared his throat. “Yeah, he did. Kind of. He said ‘I was supposed to’ before he fell over.”
Dean frowned. “Supposed to… supposed to what?”
Roman gently shook his head. “I dunno. I’d say we did just fine tonight. Sure it was nerve-wracking, but they tucked their tails and ran away like they always do. So much for a Plan B.”
Dean let out a hum, but he was still frowning. Thinking.
“Maybe it was just another empty threat,” Roman suggested.
“Maybe,” Dean muttered. “H always has something shitty up his sleeve. Maybe it didn't work out the way he wanted tonight. Or he was trying to scare us into making a wrong move.”
Roman let out a scoff. “Scare us? Is he stupid? When have we ever shown fear? We put fear in other people.”
“I know, I know. It’s weird.” Dean sighed. “Whatever. We’ll find out soon enough. Seth’ll come up with a big plan, and we’ll all kick ass.”
Roman nodded. “Hell yeah.”
“Y’know I can hear you guys, right? I’m literally right here.”
Seth’s voice startled the both of them, Roman practically jumping out of his skin at the suddenness while Dean’s eyebrows shot up into his hairline.
“Well well, lookee here, someone decided to wake up from their beauty nap,” Dean teased.
“Kinda hard to nap between you two chatterboxes,” Seth groused. He turned in Roman’s arms, bumping his forehead against Roman’s chin.
Roman tilted his head down and placed a kiss on his forehead. “Hey there, you doin’ okay?”
Seth sighed, fingers tightening in Roman’s shirt. “Do I have to answer that?”
Dean plastered himself to Seth’s back, tucking his chin over Seth’s shoulder. “If you want Roman and I to be able to help, yeah.”
Seth grumbled, gently pushing Dean off him and scooting himself up into a sitting position. He leaned back against the headboard, Roman’s head coming to rest on his thigh. Dean propped himself up on his elbows, his playful grin morphing into something more serious.
“You scared the shit out of us Seth,” Dean said frankly. “You haven’t had one of those in a while. What brought this one on?”
Seth stared down at his lap, the fingers of his right hand idly playing with the hem of the sweatshirt he was wearing. Dean’s sweatshirt.
“You told Roman?” He asked.
“Yeah I told Roman. He’s never seen you like that before. Had to explain.”
Seth gave a short nod. His left hand reached towards Roman, who gladly clasped it in his own. He took a deep breath, steadying himself for what he was about to say.
“I was supposed to betray you two tonight.”
What.
Roman’s entire body stiffened. He couldn’t have heard that right. Betray them? Seth was supposed to betray them?
He looked at Dean, whose eyes had grown wide in shock. Whatever they had expected it was not this.
“After Extreme Rules, Hunter has been texting me,” Seth continued before either of them could speak. “I don’t know how he got my number, but he did. Said some shit. Threatened us.” He let out a shuddering exhale. “Threatened you two. Said him and I ‘needed to talk about the future.’”
Roman squeezed his hand, silently urging him to continue.
“I thought, fuck it. Might gain some insight into our enemy, y’know? He let me pick the time and place, but had one condition.”
“You couldn’t tell us,” Dean muttered.
Seth nodded. “I was smart about it, or at least I thought I was. We met up at a diner a few shows back. Just him and I. Broad daylight.” He gave a humorless laugh. “He ordered a whole ass eggs benedict while I sat with a coffee. He didn’t say shit about why he wanted us to meet until his food arrived, the prick.”
Seth closed his eyes for a moment, his grip on Roman’s hand growing tighter. Roman was practically holding his breath. “He said I was going to join the Authority, betray you two, or else he was going to destroy us.”
“What, the fuck,” Dean breathed. He sounded just as bewildered as Roman felt.
Seth smiled sadly. “Yeah that was my reaction too. I said he was crazy, we literally just beat their asses, why would I join them? He started going off about how you two depend on me, how we aren’t a real team if I am the one holding everything together. How unfair that responsibility is, and if I join him then I’d get what I deserved.”
“And what the hell would that be,” Dean practically growled.
“Championships. Solo recognition.” Seth shook his head. “I didn’t tell him, but I don’t give a shit about that. Not if I can’t have you two by my side.”
“Damn right,” Dean muttered.
Seth bit his lip. “But then he started talking about you two. How it’d be rather unfortunate if you sustained career threatening injuries. If ‘unfortunate accidents’ happened outside of matches. If-” he stopped himself, obviously overwhelmed.
“It’s okay,” Roman whispered. “Take your time.”
Seth swallowed, holding on to Roman’s hand for what seemed dear life. “If you went down on the mat and didn’t get up again.”
“Fucker!” Dean spat, getting off the bed to pace back and forth across the room. “Spineless fucking coward. He knows we have them beat. He knows it and resorted to petty fucking threats.”
“That’s what I thought too,” Seth said, his voice wavering. “I called him a crazy bastard and left right then, headed back to our hotel. I tried to forget about it, but I couldn’t.” He let go of Roman’s hand, crossing his arms tight across his torso. “What he said had wormed its way into my brain and refused to leave. Every time we had a close call I thought, ‘What if that was it. What if I could’ve prevented it. What if something does happen then it’ll be my fault.’”
Roman felt his heart break in two all over again. “Seth,” he said gently, his hand grasping Seth's forearm, “if anything happened to us that wouldn’t be your fault. That kind of thinking will drive anyone crazy.”
Seth shook his head. “I know. I know. It’s foolish. We are dominating in every way. Why should I be worried? But I was. Because the thought was now there, the threat was now there. The expectation was there. And I started to wonder, am I capable of that? Of betrayal? Why did Hunter ask me if he didn’t think I was? Is that who I am?”
“Absolutely fucking not,” Dean snarled and he stopped pacing. “He’s the ‘cerebral assassin,’ he’s going to say whatever the hell he can to try and fuck us up even if it isn’t true. You’re not like that Seth.”
“That's what I thought, but then tonight,” Seth shuddered, “when he was talking about his ‘Plan B,’ he looked right at me. Like he knew. He knew I was going to do it. Take the chair I was holding to you and Roman and destroy everything we had built.” Tears started streaming down his face. “And the worst part is I considered it. I doubted myself. What if I didn’t have the right answers? What if Hunter was right? What if the only way to protect you was to betray you?”
He brought a hand up to his face, hastily wiping his tears away. “And that scared the shit out of me. I didn’t know what the hell I was going to do until I threw the chair away. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t do what was expected of me.”
Roman couldn’t hold it anymore. He fully sat up and pulled Seth into a hug, one hand resting on his back, the other carding through his hair.
Seth wrapped his arms around Roman’s middle, squeezing tight. “Even after it happened the moment kept replaying in my head. What if I had done it? What was Hunter going to do now? How else was he going to threaten us? It just kept building and building until I couldn’t hold it in anymore.” He sniffled. “I felt like I was suffocating, burning alive. I had to escape somewhere. Then Roman came into the bathroom, and you know the rest from there.”
The bed dipped, Dean coming to sit at the edge of it and wrap an arm around Seth. They sat like that, together, until Seth stopped trembling.
Roman broke the embrace, bringing his hands to Seth’s shoulders, looking him in his eyes. “I love you. Dean loves you. And I know you love us too. Nothing is ever going to change that or come between us, definitely not a desperate sleazebag like H.”
Seth swallowed and nodded stiffly.
“It's not your fault H picked you as a target,” Roman continued. “It's not your fault he made you feel fucked up.”
“That’s the point of a manipulator,” Dean groused. “You’re not supposed to know you’re being manipulated. And even if you do know, it doesn’t make you feel any less shitty about it.”
“We handled them many times before and we can handle them again. H is just trying to scare us into making a wrong move,” Roman said. “I get it though. There’s always a possibility. One of us could go down. We can’t afford to focus on that though. We gotta be in the here and now, and focus on what we can do, alright?”
“Alright,” Seth said quietly. He leaned forward, bumping his forehead against Roman’s and pulling at Dean to join them. “I’m sorry.”
“You have nothing to apologize for,” Dean murmured, and Roman nodded in assent. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Still, wanted to say it,” Seth insisted. “Wouldn't feel right if I didn’t.”
He leaned back, and that’s when Roman noticed how tired Seth looked. Exhaustion was creeping over the three of them. They all had a long ass day. At least they had the next few days to recover, to game plan. Roman was sure they could come up with something.
Dean ran a hand through his own hair, the strands sticking up at weird angles. It brought a smile to Roman's face. He glanced at Seth and saw a slight upturn to the sides of his mouth as well. “I think it’s officially bed time,” Dean huffed. “I’m getting tired just looking at you two. Shove over.” Dean pushed at Seth who let out quite the undignified squawk as he collided with Roman.
Roman chuckled and moved across the bed to make room for Dean, pulling Seth with him. They shoved back the bedcovers and nestled underneath them, taking up a similar position to earlier with Seth tucked into Roman’s arms, and his arms and legs tangling with Dean’s.
“Love you guys,” Seth said quietly. Roman squeezed at his middle and Dean pressed a kiss to Seth's nose.
“Right back atcha Sethie,” Dean quipped.
“Love you sweetheart,” Roman whispered.
Seth let out a satisfied sigh, settling between them, tension slowly releasing itself from his body.
Roman tucked his nose into Seth’s hair, breathed in his scent. They were safe. They had each other. And that’s all that mattered right now.